Thune: Voters gave D.C. another chance

U.S. wants Washington to solve 'fiscal cliff' crisis, senator says

Nov. 14, 2012

John Thune

Written by

Christopher Doering

WASHINGTON — Voters in South Dakota and across the country signaled in last week’s election they have not lost hope for lawmakers in Washington just yet, Sen. John Thune said Friday. As the country grapples with the pending “fiscal cliff,” a series of automatic spending cuts and higher tax rates that begin in January, Congress has a lot of work to get done and not a lot of time to do it.

The turnover in Congress this time around was a far cry from 2010, when the tea party took Congress by storm, and in 2006 and 2008 when voters showed they were ready for a change. In the 2012 election, Republicans are retaining control in the House and Democrats holding power in the Senate. Just down Pennsylvania Avenue, Barack Obama was elected to a second term as president.

“This time around it was interesting because it ended up being a very status quo election. It’s almost like the American people were saying ‘We want you guys to slug it out and figure this out and we’re going to give you another chance,’ ” Thune said in an interview. “I think that this is something hopefully both sides will heed, and we’ll be able to come together and figure out a way to move forward on these big issues, the most immediate of which is the fiscal cliff.”

Unless congressional action is taken, spending cuts and tax increases would be put in place to reduce the deficit by $607 billion. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said this week they would slow U.S. economic growth and increase the country’s unemployment rate to 9.1 percent, up from 7.9 percent now, pushing the country into a recession.

Lawmakers have a full slate of issues they will need to address before next year. The farm bill, an expiring wind-energy tax credit and the fiscal cliff are among the top issues that must be addressed. It’s a daunting list for a Congress that has grown increasingly more divided, making meaningful progress increasingly rare.

Bob Burns, a retired South Dakota State University political science professor, said public pressure could be enough to spur action in Washington to address these issues.

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“The American people do hope that an agreement can be reached and that we don’t go through two more years of a complete stalemate in the United States Congress, between the House and Senate, and the White House,” he said. “On the fiscal cliff, I think all sides agree we need some kind of agreement before we go over the cliff. I think there is pressure on all sides to reach an agreement.”

Burns said he is confident Congress and the administration will reach a deal establishing a blueprint for taxation and spending, allowing them to postpone addressing the fiscal cliff. “The exit polls do reveal that the American people do expect decision making,” he said.

Republicans have signaled a willingness to work closer and compromise with President Obama, said Thune, but at the same time they are not going to sign off on something they view as a bad for their constituents.

“I do think there is an expectation, and it’s true in South Dakota, and I think it is true all across the country, that they want us to at least do the best we can to find consensus — don’t compromise your principles, but try and get the best possible outcome you can given the political dynamics we’re dealing with at the current time,” Thune said. Increasingly, he said, constituents are looking to their lawmakers to end the gridlock that is stopping them from making progress.